Welcome to the 2024 NCSTA Professional Development Institute. The Benton food service bar will be available in the Main Lobby during the lunch break on Thursday and Friday. Grab a quick bite and visit the Exhibit Hall. StemScopes/Accelerated Learning offers a free lunch and learn session on Thursday. Get tickets at Booth 204. Savvas offers a free lunch and learn session on Friday. Get tickets at Booth 101. NCSTA will reimburse up to $15 for parking (total, not per day). Information and form from our website. CEU forms will be emailed to you after the conference. You may earn .6 CEU per day.
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Cross curricular project for higher level Physics and Earth/Environmental science classes that allow students to work together to design a theme park with an environmental focus. Students then present their theme parks in a sales pitch to members of the community.
Come and hear great stories and learn fun dance routines to learn about the scientific method, types of chemical reactions, cell division, and the pathway of blood through the heart. These fun tales and tactics will help your students to understand concepts in a dynamic and engaging manner!
I am an educator with NCDPS in the division of Juvenile Justice. It is vital that we at DJJ continue to find safe alternatives to hands on activities for our student population. Due to policies and safety standards, students are unable to participate in a number of activities that... Read More →
This presentation explores AI's influence on student learning in biology at Beddingfield High School, Wilson, NC. It examines AI's impact on vocabulary development and engagement during inquiry-based learning. The experimental group used ChatGPT alongside traditional learning supports, while the control group relied solely on conventional aids. Initial findings reveal no significant statistical differences in outcomes between groups. Yet, certain engagement metrics indicate promising trends that warrant further investigation with larger, more homogeneous samples.
Test measurement specialists from the NC Department of Public Instruction's Office of Accountability and Testing will present on the new state formative and summative assessments for the 2023 science Standard Course of Study for grades 5 and 8 and biology.
Test Measurement Specialist, NCDPI Office of Testing and Accountability
I currently work for the North Carolina Department of Public Instruction as the State's mathematics and science test measurement specialist. In this role, I coordinate the development of State-produced assessments for mathematics, grades 6 through 12, and science, grades 8 through... Read More →
Discover how to make science education more engaging and effective with "Play to Learn: Integrating Board/Card Games in Science Education." This session explores innovative ways to incorporate board games into your science curriculum, enhancing student participation and comprehension. Learn practical strategies and game-based activities that foster critical thinking, teamwork, and a deeper understanding of scientific concepts, transforming your classroom into a dynamic learning environment. Are you game?
Are you looking for a way to make digital learning impactful and focused on creation? This workshop will highlight creative innovative digital projects. Attendees will create digital interactives that can be used for classroom or distance learning instruction and access federal resources for student engagement. Learning becomes interactive, memorable, and fun with this session. Bring your device and walk away with knowledge and resources.
I have over 17 years of teaching experience from preschool to high school and adult health education. I now teach life science courses. I have been Interact and Environmental Club sponsor.
Thursday November 7, 2024 9:30am - 10:20am EST
Salem 1C
Join us in an interactive session for physics/chemistry/PSCI teachers where we learn and practice Socraevic questioning fof our students to uncover hidden science misconceptions and correct them in a positive relationship-building method for the entire class. This dynamic method of teaching has been proven to improve student engagement and academic growth.
This talk will present an overview of CERN's fully funded programs for middle and high school teachers to travel to Geneva for two weeks to take part in an intensive workshop in particle physics and learn about the experiments running at the Large Hadron Collider (LHC). Lessons plans and resources will be shared.
Join us for "Igniting Curiosity: Uniting Science Practices for Today's Learners," an engaging workshop designed to integrate Earth, Life, and Physical Sciences through interactive strategies. Dive into the eight Science and Engineering Practices (SEPs) with hands-on activities, group discussions, and digital tools. Discover innovative methods to engage diverse learners and meet new science standards. This dynamic session promises to equip educators with practical techniques to foster inquiry, collaboration, and excitement in the classroom.
Biology teacher(Vertical Alignment Liaison), Charlotte Mecklenburg Schools
I teach Biology at South Mecklenburg High School, Charlotte. I have a Masters degree in Biochemistry. I also act as a Vertical Alignment Liaison in the school, coordinating between the different Sciences. I belief that learning is a continuous process, and I am a ardent learner.
See how modeling and problem solving in the classroom are used in energy careers and energy resilience. Hands-on lessons will be available related to microgrids, renewable energy, Ohm’s Law, and calculating Watts of Power. From Hot Springs to Ocracoke, we’ll discuss the function of microgrids and their role in community resilience to power outages.
The purpose of this interactive session is to provide an overview of the new support documents for the 2023 Science Standards. Participants will engage in conversations highlighting how the Disciplinary Core Ideas (DCI), Science & Engineering Practices (SEP), and Crosscutting Concepts (CCC) connect to unpacking the standards. We will also discuss how the proficiency statements and academic language support student learning. This session will focus on Biology and Earth/Environmental Science.
Secondary Science Consultant, North Carolina Department of Public Instruction
Gavin Fradel is a science consultant in the K-12 Standards, Curriculum and Instruction section in the Office of Academic Standards at the North Carolina Department of Public Instruction. Gavin obtained his Undergraduate teaching degree in Middle Grades Education with a concentration... Read More →
K-5 Science Consultant, North Carolina Department of Public Instruction
Debra works as an Elementary Science Consultant in the Division of Academic Standards at NCDPI. She has a Ph.D in Curriculum and Instruction with an emphasis on STEM Education. Prior to joining NCDPI, Debra worked as a classroom teacher and science specialist. During this time she... Read More →
Secondary Science Consultant, North Carolina Department of Public Instruction
Benita Tipton works as a Secondary Science Consultant with the NC Department of Public Instruction. Prior to coming to the Department in 2003, she taught high school science and college-entry biology at a community college. She earned a master’s degree in Education with a concentration... Read More →
Secondary Science Consultant, NC Department of Public Instruction
Alexis Wood joined the NCDPI Office of Academic Standards after teaching high school for 20 years in Lenoir and Wake Counties. Her primary job as a member of the Office of Academic Standards Science Team is to provide support to PSUs at the secondary science level that ensures the... Read More →
Explore how Houghton Mifflin Harcourt's Science Dimensions series can support your implementation of the new Science Standards! We'll explore HMH resources for both middle and high school Science! Check out both our print and digital resources!
Whether students are learning about renewable or nonrenewable energy resources, the Switch Classroom curriculum clearly and effectively identifies the trade-offs of using each energy resource. Through an unbiased approach to energy literacy, Switch classroom teaches about energy resources, consumption, conservation, and energy use around the world. Switch Classroom offers a wide variety of classroom resources from video lessons, hands-on labs, and data analysis activities that will engage students in thinking critically about energy.
Participants will engage in an inquiry-based learning sequence on how vaccines work, the types of vaccines, and the global social justice issues around vaccine information and access. These lessons are aligned with the 2023 NC science standards and will showcase science and engineering practices such as analyzing and interpreting data, using mathematics and computational thinking, and constructing explanations.
The purpose of this interactive session is to provide an overview of the new support documents for the 2023 Science Standards. Participants will engage in conversations highlighting how the Disciplinary Core Ideas (DCI), Science & Engineering Practices (SEP), and Crosscutting Concepts (CCC) connect to unpacking the standards. We will also discuss how the proficiency statements and academic language support student learning. This session will focus on Chemistry, Physical Science, and Physics.
Secondary Science Consultant, North Carolina Department of Public Instruction
Gavin Fradel is a science consultant in the K-12 Standards, Curriculum and Instruction section in the Office of Academic Standards at the North Carolina Department of Public Instruction. Gavin obtained his Undergraduate teaching degree in Middle Grades Education with a concentration... Read More →
K-5 Science Consultant, North Carolina Department of Public Instruction
Debra works as an Elementary Science Consultant in the Division of Academic Standards at NCDPI. She has a Ph.D in Curriculum and Instruction with an emphasis on STEM Education. Prior to joining NCDPI, Debra worked as a classroom teacher and science specialist. During this time she... Read More →
Secondary Science Consultant, North Carolina Department of Public Instruction
Benita Tipton works as a Secondary Science Consultant with the NC Department of Public Instruction. Prior to coming to the Department in 2003, she taught high school science and college-entry biology at a community college. She earned a master’s degree in Education with a concentration... Read More →
Secondary Science Consultant, NC Department of Public Instruction
Alexis Wood joined the NCDPI Office of Academic Standards after teaching high school for 20 years in Lenoir and Wake Counties. Her primary job as a member of the Office of Academic Standards Science Team is to provide support to PSUs at the secondary science level that ensures the... Read More →
NC communities are increasingly encountering wildfire smoke and reduced air quality from forest fires burning near and far. In this session, we’ll explore curriculum connections and discuss strategies and tools for engaging students in learning about NC’s growing wildland urban interface and increased susceptibility to climate-driven wildfires. We will also explore the range of solutions that can be implemented to prevent wildfires and protect public health from exposure to wildfire smoke.
BIOZONE’s interactive worktexts provides flexible, engaging, student-centred resources for Biology, Environmental Science, Physical Sciences, Earth and Space, Chemistry, Physics, and Anatomy and Physiology. Our digital platform integrates the worktexts with presentation slides, interactive 3D models, videos and more, providing powerful and flexible options for delivering your high school science programs.
Inspiring better outcomes for our planet through science education.BIOZONE has more than 30 years experience in the development of engaging and effective resources for science teaching and learning. Our resources are unlike any you’ve seen before, and a departure from the traditional... Read More →
Thursday November 7, 2024 3:30pm - 4:20pm EST
Salem 1B
What's so phenomenal about phenomena? Join the Savvas science team for an engaging, hands-on workshop as we explore the purpose of phenomena, the power of using it to drive your instruction, and the way it will support your students as they bring their own life experiences into your classroom. Attendees will leave with purposeful strategies they can replicate in their classrooms immediately.
Feeling overwhelmed by the ever-evolving world of science? Dive into the exciting potential of AI tools to transform your K-12 science curriculum! This collaborative session will explore how AI can enhance student engagement, personalize learning, and support the mastery of key science standards. Join us as we explore real-world examples, brainstorm implementation strategies, and share resources to ignite the scientific curiosity of your students!
Digital Teaching & Learning Regional Consultant, Piedmont-Triad, NC Department of Public Instruction
Brian Whitson is a Digital Teaching & Learning Consultant with the Office of Digital Teaching & Learning at the North Carolina Department of Public Instruction (NCDPI). He proudly covers the Piedmont-Triad Region where he supports public schools units with the implementation and integration... Read More →
Participants will be introduced to three high school science lessons that integrate the highly relevant and cutting-edge science of PFAS (per- and polyfluoroalkyl substances). PFAS are a class of thousands of persistent chemicals used in the production of waterproof, stainproof, and nonstick items. These lessons, co-created by teachers and scientists, use real-world data collected from water and aquatic organisms in NC. Lessons are aligned with the new NC science standards in Biology and Earth Environmental (as well as AP Biology and APES).
Nervous about the new Biology standards? Overwhelmed by the supporting documents? Unsure what assessment will look like? Session presenters served on the teams that wrote the new standards, drafted the supporting documents, and made recommendations for EOC assessment specs. Now, we want to help teachers develop meaningful instruction, resolve concerns, and feel confident utilizing the new standards with their students. Time will be reserved for small-group collaboration.
Biology & CTE teacher, Wilkes Early College High School
I am a Teacher Ambassador for the National Center for Science Education, where I help empower teachers to teach controversial topics like climate science and evolution. I am known among colleagues as the teacher with bees. My school has an on-campus honey bee apiary, and I collaborate... Read More →
Secondary Science Consultant, North Carolina Department of Public Instruction
Benita Tipton works as a Secondary Science Consultant with the NC Department of Public Instruction. Prior to coming to the Department in 2003, she taught high school science and college-entry biology at a community college. She earned a master’s degree in Education with a concentration... Read More →
Thursday November 7, 2024 3:30pm - 4:20pm EST
Winston 1C
Come and discover how Science and Engineering Practices are integrated with the process of student research! Resources and activities will be shared with teachers that can be used in their classrooms. Topics discussed include steps of all stages of conducting student research, guiding students to decide on topics, building time management skills, advancing student understanding and critical thinking, reviewing and grading student presentations, and providing information for opportunities for students to share their research.
Rachel Pedler, Tiara Davis, Kelly Pipes, Pamela Phillips will share. Meet fellow biology/life science teachers for an opportunity to network and share ideas and experiences.
This workshop will help support teachers teaching the new science standards with the implementation of Gizmos. Teachers will be a part of a modeled lesson and debrief on best practices while using Gizmos in the science classroom.
Hands-on experiments and background info that allow students to explore the different forms of energy and how they are transformed using items encountered in our everyday life. Motion, sound, thermal, radiant, electrical, and chemical energy transformations are explored. You’ll be able to confidently explain energy transformations to 3-12 grade students, differentiate between forms of energy, and describe how energy is stored or used in major energy sources!
NEED specializes in energy education providing state-aligned FREE curriculum materials, teacher training, and student leadership development that engage students in learning about energy authentically across disciplines. NEED classrooms can be STEM classrooms or social science and... Read More →
Friday November 8, 2024 8:00am - 8:50am EST
Salem 1C
A quick look at the geologic history of North Carolina and how our landforms, landscapes, and resources were created through plate tectonic processes. A variety of hands-on activities and resources will be provided for use in your classrooms.
How can you engage and support diverse learners through discussion? In this session, we will share strategies and supports to get your biology students talking as they analyze patterns in the distribution of species across the United States and build a consensus definition for the term ecosystem. By sharing ideas and building on each other’s understanding, students will make powerful connections to content and practices.
The incorporation of the SEPs into the new Science Standards provides a solid foundation for meaningful Physical Science instruction in the ML classroom. In conjunction with the WIDA ELD Science Standards, MLs experience science as framed by the SEPs in the new standards and develop the associated academic language underlying these experiences. Examples from the Physics standards of Physical Science will be explored through the lenses of the SEPs and the WIDA ELD Science Standards.
Data literacy is a key piece of analyzing the evidence for climate change. In this session, we will evaluate data related to Earth’s carbon cycle. We will also look at other data sources that can be used when teaching climate change and share a variety of supports that students can use any time they create or analyze data. Build your data literacy tool kit for your Earth science classes and more.
Experience the thrill of game-based learning with Sci-Ops: Global Defense! Transform your classroom with our NSF award-winning video game that teaches 6th-12th grade chemistry and physical science standards and exposes your students to STEM career paths and real world technologies. You will engage and excite your students by incorporating our video game and curricular resources into your classroom. Leave with an all inclusive access code to our 3D game-based platform.
We will discuss pacing and unit planning to assist those adapting to the new biology standards. Our focus will be on inquiry-based lessons in experimental design and evolution, highlighting the use of models, questioning techniques, and data analysis. We'll offer engaging activities and opportunities to collaborate with fellow biology educators to share implementation strategies for the new standards.
Learn about the planning and execution of a cross-curricular, experiential learning opportunity aimed to cultivate understanding and desire to protect the interconnectedness of nature, humans, and humans to nature. See how high-school students from the flatlands of Eastern North Carolina revel in the Blue Ridge Mountains, shaping their own sense of social responsibility.
If you want to improve your leadership skills, this is the session for you! Learn how the NCSLA Science Leadership Fellows Program builds individuals' leadership skills in its two-year program. This session is appropriate for all STEM educators regardless of position, including informal educators. Graduates of this program are better leaders in their workplaces and in professional associations. The program is generously funded by the NC SMT Center and the BWF.
Senior STEM Specialist, North Carolina Center for the Advancement of Teaching
Jennifer currently serves as the STEM Specialist for NCCAT. Her previous roles include STEM Coordinator for Guilford County Schools and high school science teacher.
Crush critical thinking and creativity with personalized chatbots that you create for your students. In this hands-on session, you will explore and learn how to create custom bots aligned with the new science standards using SchoolAI and MagicSchool. Drawing from science-based playful approaches, this session connects the newest genAI tools to the new science standards and combines it with sound, age-appropriate pedagogy to empower your students with the skills they need to be successful humans.
Western Region DTL Consultant, NCDPI Digital Teaching and Learning
Stacy Lovdahl has 24 years of experience as a state and district-level education technologist. She is an AI literacy trainer, the Western DTL Consultant for NCDPI, an Instructional Technology Facilitator and a middle school science teacher. Stacy has dedicated significant efforts... Read More →
Friday November 8, 2024 1:40pm - 2:30pm EST
Winston 3C
This session will feature biomedical research taking place to understand environmental exposures to per- and polyfluoroalkyl substances (PFAS) and implications for human health. Attendees will participate in an activity that introduces how scientists use a systems biology approach to study environmental influences on living systems. This session will showcase strategies for incorporating real biological data and associated science practices into instruction to provide students with current, NC-relevant examples of curriculum concepts.
Suggestions and feedback from district leaders and teachers after implementing a year-long, district-wide professional development on teaching through the Science and Engineering Practices. Includes strategies for district leaders and teacher leaders to build a district-wide culture of community and collaboration among science teachers at the elementary, middle, and high school levels. Includes a tailored menu of instructional strategies and resources for understanding and teaching each SEP.
What can BioNetwork do for you and your classroom? The BioNetwork STEM Outreach division provides STEM resources, programs, and more for teachers and students across North Carolina. Join us as we provide an overview of what BioNetwork is, what programs and events we offer, and answer your questions.
I am the new Western STEM Outreach Coordinator for BioNetwork, the life-science training initiative of the NC Community College System. Our outreach team strives to serve K-12 and community college educators and students in all 100 counties through community STEM events, classroom... Read More →
In the presentation, I will describe how I use the Modern Classroom Project to promote a differentiated learning environment for multilingual learners.
Conquering the new science standards might seem like moving mountains but it doesn't have to be. Discover how to use free AI tools to design inquiry-based lessons that engage learners and align with the new North Carolina standards, in less time than you ever thought possible. Join us to transform your teaching with cutting-edge AI tools like MagicSchool, AIs like ChatGPT and more.
Western Region DTL Consultant, NCDPI Digital Teaching and Learning
Stacy Lovdahl has 24 years of experience as a state and district-level education technologist. She is an AI literacy trainer, the Western DTL Consultant for NCDPI, an Instructional Technology Facilitator and a middle school science teacher. Stacy has dedicated significant efforts... Read More →
Friday November 8, 2024 2:40pm - 3:30pm EST
Winston 3A
This presentation will combine hands-on activities and lecture. Participants will make a mobile using biotic and abiotic factors and a small terrarium. The presentation will showcase a lesson for ESS.EES 4.1 with an introduction to ESS.EES 4.2 and LS.Bio.4.1. Participants will leave with an understanding of how to create lessons for the new standards and how to make models to incorporate biotic and abiotic factors in various ecosystems.
Are you ready to take your teaching outside the classroom? Join us to explore various approaches to outdoor education! Discover strategies to tackle the unique challenges of teaching outdoors, best practices and considerations. In this workshop, you'll have the opportunity to transform one of your indoor lessons into an engaging outdoor activity. Bring a lesson that you'd like to adapt for an outdoor setting and SEP’s. We'll also provide sample lessons tailored for outdoor learning.
In this session, instructors will use 2D models of photosynthesis and cellular respiration to conduct tracking of carbon molecules and apply this information to a hands-on assay using freshwater algae to indirectly qualify carbon movement. They will then develop protocols that quantifies the qualitative changes witnessed (via carbon dioxide tracking) under a variety of environmental conditions. Collectively, participants will use the sum of their experiences to develop and explain an ecological model of carbon cycling.
